Lever-actuated locking valve.



J. E. RIGKERTT. LEVER AOTUATED LOOKING VALVE. APPLICATION FILED IEB.11, 19l1.

,005,31 1. Patented Oct. 10,1911.

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I r m g COLUMBIA PLANouRAPl-l co UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. RICKERTT, 0F 0MALHA,--1\TEBRASKA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-THIRD TO ANDREW PEARSON, OF OMAHA, NEBRASKA.

LEVER-AGTUATED LOCKING VALVE.

oosen.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN E. RIQKERTT, citizen of the United States of America, residing at Omaha, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lever- Actuated Locking Valves, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to lever actuated valves adapted to be used in dispensing large quantities of liquid under heavy pressure; and the objects of my improvement are first, to provide means for safely, easily and quickly opening and closing a large valve in a duct carrying a liquid supply under heavy pressure; second, to provide lever actuating mechanism that will automatically lock the valve either open or closed; third, to open the valve against the pressure of the liquid and dispose the valve-stem and stuffing-box on the discharge side of the closure, so that the stuffing-box will be entirely relieved from the pressure and the discharge will completely drain itself when the valve is closed; fourth, to construct the valvechamber separable from the other parts of the valve, including the seat, so that said other parts will be as readily applicable directly to the bottom of a tank or vat as is the whole device to a line of pipe; fifth, to provide a lever for actuating valves that folds up compactly out of the way when the valve is closed and plainly indicates when the valve is open; and sixth, to provide such adjustable connection between the valve closure and operating lever as will facilitate taking up the wear or refit of the valve in its seat and also facilitate the adjustment of the locking feature. All of which objects are attained by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is an elevation of the complete contrivance forming an elbow connection between a vertical supply pipe and a horizontal discharge pipe, the valve being set open; Fig. 2, a view at right angles to Fig. 1, partly in section and showing the valve locked closed; Fig. 3, a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the valve-chamber removed and the other parts applied to the bottom of a tank and the valve locked open as in Fig. 1; Fig. 4, an enlarged view of the underside, showing the valve operating mechanism when the valve is closed, as in Fig. 2; and Fig. 5, is an underside view of the valve clo- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 11, 1811.

Patented Oct. 10, 1911.

Serial No. 608,113.

' sure removed from the top end of the stem.

In all of which views, like reference numerals refer to like parts.

The body or casing is elbow-shaped, comprising a vertical part 2 terminating in a valve-seat-head 3 at the top, and having a horizontal branch 4 at the lower end for receiving the threaded end of the discharge pipe 5. The seat-head is of greater diameter to form the eXteriorly threaded annular projection 6 around the top. The bellshaped valve-chamber 7 has a threaded mouth to receive the seat-head and an internally threaded nipple or hollow crown boss 8 to receive the end of the supply pipe 9. An integral downwardly projecting exten sion of the body forms part of the stuffingboX 10 through which the longitudinally-reciprocating valve-stem 11 is disposed vertically and centrally through the body and valve-seat-he'ad. The valve-seat 12 is a tapered port through said head; and is of less diameter than the internal diameter of the body, to allow material for wear and for en largement of the opening to refit said seat. The valve-seat-head may be seated in the bottom of a reservoir 13 by omitting the valve-chamber, as shown in Fig. 3.

The valve 14: is the frustum of an inverted cone and made relatively large so that when new it is seated high, as shown in Fig. 2. It has the downwardly disposed tapered legs 15 with their outer surfaces in alinement with the seat-face of the valve. These legs spaced evenly around form a strainer to the inlet-port or opening when the valve is open, as shown in Fig. 3, to prevent the passage of coarse matter, the accumulation of obstructions between the valve and seat and to guide these parts correctly together; thus preventing the mutilation of their fitted faces especially in refitting and assembling.

The valve is fastened rigidly on the top end of the vertically reciprocable stem, threaded tightly through the central opening 16, so that it may be removed for renewal.

The lower end of the valve-stem projects downwardly from the stuffingbox and has an adjustable threaded connection in the pivot socket 17. The set-screw 18 is disposed through the wall of the socket, as shown, to securely fasten said connection at any desired longitudinal adjustment of the stem in the socket. To connect the mechanism for actuating the stem, the lower end of the socket has the tenon 19 pivoted in the fork at the center of the transversely disposed vertically acting rocking-lever 20.

The lower end of the link 21 is pivoted between the fork-ends of the rocking-lever 20, and the forked top end of said link is pivoted on the ear 22 on the valve body. From a similar ear 23 at the opposite side of the valve body there is pivotally suspended by its forked top end the link 24:, of length substantially equal to the link 21 and having an intermediate outward bend 25. A handlever 26 has at its free end the right angularly disposed handle 27 the opposite end comprises a fork the parallel branches 28 and 28 of which form the greater part of the length of'the lever; and said branches arefreverse-curved in planes parallel with each other and at right angles tothe furcation, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. 'Between the terminal ends of these branches the shank end of the forked rocking-lever 20 is pivoted. Also the lower end of the bent link is pivoted between the branches of the handlever, at a point distant from the pivotal connection thereto of the rocking-lever, equal to one-half of the throw required at this end of said rocking-lever to give the valve stem its proper rectilineal motion to open and close the valve.

'lVhen the levers and links are connected, as shown and described above, and the lower end of the valve-stem properly adjusted in the socket, to close'the valve the hand-lever is swung upwardly to the position shown in Fig. 2; this brings the base of its fork to stop against the forked top end of the bent link 24. By this movement and the reverse curvature of the hand lever, the fulcrum pivot 29 is carried a little beyond the alinement of the pivotal connection 30 of the hand-lever to the rocking-lever and the pivotal connection 31 of the bent link to the ear, as indicated by the broken line 32, in Fig. 2, and thus locks the parts in this position. During this movement the outward bend 25 of the bent link passes and projects through the long fork of the hand-lever as shown. To open the valve the hand-lever is swung down to the position shown in Fig. 3, where it is stopped by the connected shank end of the rocking-lever striking the inner curve of the bent link. This bend in the link allows the pivotal connection 30 of the two levers to pass a little beyond the alinement of the pivot connections 29 and 31 at the ends of the bent link, as indicated by the broken line 33 in Fig. 3, and thus locks the parts in this position.

All joints are formed with three bearings on the pivot-bolt, whereby the joints work easily and accurately and do not wear out of line; which is accomplished by disposing the single or shank end of each member in a forked end of a connected member.

It is obvious that the links carry the levers and socket in a manner to promote the easy and perfect rectilineal action of the valve-stem at every part of its movement and that the whole will be operated with ease and safety, even when dispensing a liquid under great pressure with a very large valve.

I claim:

1. In a lever-actuated locking valve, a casing having an outlet, an inlet-port with a concentric valve-seat and a stufiing-box, a valve-stem disposed through said stufiingbox, and a valve closure mounted on said stem to open and close said inlet-port by endwise reciprocating movement of said stem, in combination with a pair of links disposed at opposite sides of said stem and hinged to said casing, a rocking-lever pivoted on said stem and having one end pivoted to one of said links, a hand-lever pivoted to the opposite end of said rocking-lever and to the opposite link at points spaced apart in said hand-lever a distance equal to one-half of the required throw of said rocking-lever to open and close the valve.

2. Lock-lever valve-actuating mechanism, having in combination, a rectillneally reciprocable valve-stem connected to open and close a valve, a rocking-lever mounted 011 said stem, a link hinged to a stationary support and pivotally connected to fulcrum one end of said rocking-lever, a hand-lever pivotally connected to the opposite end of said rocking-lever, a link hinged to a sta tionary support and pivotally connected to fulcrum said handlever at a point distant from its connection to said rocking-lever equal to one-half of the required throw of said rocking-lever to open and close the valve.

3. Lock-lever valve-actuating mechanism, having in combination a valve-stem connected to open and close a valve closure by rectilineal reciprocating motion, a pivotsocket mounted longitudinally adjustable on said stem, an intermediately-pivoted rocking-lever mounted on said socket, a link hinged to the valve body and pii otally connected to one end of said rocking-lever, an oppositely disposed link hinged to said valve body, and a hand lever pivotally connected to the swinging end of said rocking-lever and pivotally fulcrumed on the swinging end of said oppositely disposed link.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN E. RICKERTT.

Witnesses: I

A. PRESTON, J. A, VVEssMAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

. Washington, D. C. 

